


Balcony Banter

by snacc_noir



Series: Prompt me cowards: Tumblr Ficlets [7]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Identity Reveal, Ladrien | Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng as Ladybug, Marinette slips up but for once Adrien picks up on it, Sort Of, ladrien awkwardness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 05:00:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26830000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snacc_noir/pseuds/snacc_noir
Summary: What's Ladybug doing at Marinette's house?
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Prompt me cowards: Tumblr Ficlets [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1738810
Comments: 4
Kudos: 162





	Balcony Banter

**Author's Note:**

> ilovealldrships asked:
> 
> Ladrien , 18, j
> 
> 18\. “No, it doesn’t hurt”  
> j. Canon

“Uh, hi.”

He’d been on his way to Marinette’s house.

Marinette’s.

Not… Ladybug’s?

“Hi!” the red vision above him, perched on his friend’s balcony in some mid-position like he’d paused her in the middle of something, squeaked.

His fingers pressed deep into his bag strap, mind hurdling over _what_ was going on.

Marinate had, with fragile grace and an uncooperative tongue, invited him to play video games because Nino and Alya spent so much time together and she wanted him to know that they could hang out together. Enthusiastically, Adrien obliged, and the second he’d detransformed after the latest garden akuma, he’d sprinted to Marinette’s in hopes he wouldn’t be late.

Well apparently, Ladybug couldn’t get enough of him. Because for some reason she’d flocked to Marinette’s too?

(He was still figuring that out.)

 _Why_ was she here?

“Are you playing video games with us today?”

“Uhh…”

His head titled a little, reasonably confused.

“Um, no, no, no! I was just… checking on Marinette after the akuma! Yes! Yes that’s all! Ahahaha.”

“Oh. Is she okay? I don’t remember her being around during the akuma.”

“She was! I’m sure! And she’s fine.”

Adrien was quite sure she _wasn’t_ , but he couldn’t exactly cough up _how_ he knew that _._

“Are you friends?“

“Friends! Yeah, Marinette and I are really close- well, somewhat close. As close as you can be without her knowing your identity, so I was just checking if she—”

“Is she there?”

His lower angle had him craning his neck to Ladybug. No other figure was discernible behind what he could see of the balcony.

She laughed nervously.

“Marinette?”

He squinted. “Um, yeah?”

“Yep! She’s here!”

“Is she, uh- Can I say hi?”

Something changed in the pre-established panic in Ladybug’s expression. Inward death descended her pale contours like her blood had gone to ice.

“She’s gone downstairs now, and you caught me just as I was leaving! Haha! It was so nice to see you, Adrien.”

He was too distracted by Marinette’s lack of existence to blush heavily. Many, many things didn’t add up.

“You did great today.”

For the second time, his words stopped her mid-movement.

“Oh, aha, thank you.”

He smiled, watching her glance around like she was looking for something.

Strikingly, he saw her rub her arm like it was sore. She’d been rubbing it before facing the akuma, so she’d hurt it as her civilian self. She’d told Chat she was quite clumsy when he asked.

“What’s wrong?”

“Um…” Her tight expression left him wondering again what had left her so stressed. Maybe Marinette really _wasn't_ okay? Because Ladybug _had_ been fine - relaxed and even partly giddy after battle.

Her earrings beeped.

Adrien’s eyes rounded.

“Does that mean you need to leave?”

“Yes. Yes, it does. I’m just…” At this point, surprise touched him realising how close to sweating she appeared. Her gaze shifted calculating—that look he _loved_ on her—panic not disregarded.

She vaulted her yo-yo down, and he watched her fall into an alleyway.

He heard her shriek.

She was _hurt_.

Adrien dropped his bag and sprinted to the alleyway behind the bakery to check if she was alright, forgetting his idenity and privacy of hers. Upon reaching where he’d thought she’d landed, no one was around.

“Adrien?”

He turned, a figure posed at the mouth of the alley catching his eye.

“Marinette! You’re here.”

“Yeah,” her lips and cheeks were redder (maybe she’d just been running too?), “I was coming downstairs for you. Then I heard a shriek then ran out the door to find it. Was that Ladybug?”

“I think so.” He dusted himself off and began following her out the balcony. “She said she was checking on you?”

She hummed, but it was almost like a startle.

Adrien side-eyed her. Everything was quite weird, but what else was new? After silently heading back to the house beside his friend who, thankfully, wasn't harmed by the akuma (he was certain she wasn't even _there_ ), he travelled up the stairs and saw the video games weren’t yet set up. Looking back to her, he noticed something odd.

She was rubbing her arm.

The same spot Ladybug was.

“Does it hurt?”

“What?”

“Your arm.”

She glanced down. “No,” she laughed, “it doesn’t hurt. It was just itchy.”

“Oh.”

He took a seat on the chaise, watching as she made desk space with her other arm.

“So, Marinette,” he began as she nervously opened her computer, “what’s… what’s Ladybug like?”

He could ask because, well, they were friends, after all.

Adrien saw her stiffen with a grin.

Weren’t they?

**Author's Note:**

> [ tumblr](https://snacc-noir.tumblr.com/)


End file.
